Whether residents want change or not, it will happen, so the town would be well advised to prepare for the future, according to South Berwick’s new planning and economic community director.
“I will tell you this – if you do nothing, it will change; if you do something, it will change,” DeCarlo Brown told the Planning Board at its Nov. 13 meeting. “There’s a huge demand to live in this community, but you need to keep infrastructure in mind….to be able to absorb that growth in a healthy way.”
DeCarlo made these remarks in a discussion of the 2024 Comprehensive Plan and how it will be the touchstone of land use and subdivision sections of town ordinances.
The board reviewed the specific responsibilities of planning boards in Maine in a presentation by Brown.
The board has the authority to approve applications for developments and to propose land use regulations to the Town Council, Brown explained. Town Council Chair Mallory Cook has expressed interest in working with the board as it revises ordinances, he noted.
Brown agreed with board Vice Chair Hershey Hirschkop, who suggested starting with the “big picture.” The board’s work, he said, should be guided by the Comprehensive Plan, which received final approval recently from the Town Council after two years of work by town staff, citizen volunteers, and several opportunities for public input.
What is required by the state can’t be changed, but ordinances at the local level can address state requirements and allow the town to manage growth, Brown explained.
In every town in southern Maine, most growth comes from outside the subdivision process as it is easier to split lots, an action that does not require going through a local board for permits. According to state law, a landowner can divide a lot once every five years without going through the local planning board, which leaves little opportunity for a town to weigh in on impacts from traffic and other public services, Brown noted.
“I’ve seen it 100 times, anyone who has the time and land,” Brown said. “Without any approvals, in 20 years you might have 20 houses.”
Brown also pointed to Town Hall as an example of what happens when the town does not do needed upkeep.
“I’ll point directly to this building where you cannot use the front door because the concrete is falling off, and there is a danger to that,” he said. “There is a cost associated with it. Every decision you make will have a cost or consequence, and your role and responsibilities are to decide what costs do you want to pay?”
At least one board member noted that not all residents want growth in town.
“There’s not a consensus in town that we should grow,” said Hirschkop, who went on to talk about a range of opinions on what the town should do and be. “I’ve heard people say they don’t want any change and liked the way the town was 60 years ago or only want single family homes.”
Brown also told the board there are ways to increase public input within the Planning Board procedures, as well as additional ways to enforce conditions placed on development. In the past, board members have expressed an interest in tightening enforcement of conditions placed on applicant’s projects.
The Planning Board now has an empty seat that was created in the recent election when board member Bill Cole won a seat on the Town Council.
